1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates in general to bag-in-box packaging methods and equipment, and more particularly, to a bag-in-box assembly apparatus and a method of coupling a bag and a box to form a bag-in-box assembly.
2. Background Art
The use of bag-in-box packaging is well known in the art. One challenge has been to provide bag-in-box packaging that has a relatively easily locatable tap, or a tap that is accessible without having to reach into the box to retrieve. A number of such bag-in-box packages have been devised and developed. These packages are utilized for any number of different flowable materials, such as syrups, wine and other beverages, chemicals, oils, and the like.
An entire class of such bag in box packages relies upon the placement of a bag and dispensing tap within the outer box. The outer box has a frangible or tearable portion which can be removed to expose the tap. Once the tap has been located, the user can generally withdraw the tap from the box and use the tap to dispense the contents of the bag. In some embodiments, the tap can be coupled to the box such that it is in a dispensing position.
While the aforementioned bag in box packages have been commercially successful, they are often not suitable for some applications where a fixed outside tap is desired. In those types of packages, the tap or dispensing element is already coupled to the outside of the box and in a dispense ready configuration. Among other advantages, the user can quickly and easily begin using the container. Additionally, with the tap being located on the outside of the box, the bag in box can be filled in a fully erected configuration and often on relative standard filling equipment. Among other solutions, certain such bag in box packages are disclosed in of U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2006/0180643 published to Stephenson; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2008/0041018 published to Stephenson; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2008/0267538 published to Stephenson, and WO 2007/057677 published to Stephenson all of which are incorporated in their entirety. These references all contemplate a bag that is coupled to a collar which is then coupled to the outer box. The collar provides a recessed region for the positioning of the tap, cap or dispensing element so that it is easily accessible.
Problematically, while such containers have been developed, it has proven difficult to have such containers assembled and filled. One problem is associated with the insertion of the bag within the box and the locating of the spout of the bag (to which the tap is coupled) relative to the box in fixed engagement therewith. The aforementioned patent publications disclose different manners of achieving the assembly. One particular solution has been to flat assemble the package with the bag engaged to the collar and the collar engaged to the box. The box is initially flat and articulated with these components in place. Such a solution has some drawbacks, one of which is that bags are compromised as they are pinched during the articulation of the box from a flat pack.
Another solution has been to manually insert the bag into the fully assembled box prior to snapping the collar onto the outer box. Yet another solution has been the creation of a cartridge. The cartridge comprises a bag which is coupled to the collar. The bag is folded under the footprint of the collar and then maintained in such an orientation by a frangible element such as a paper retainer, or a piece of low strength adhesive tape. Once the cartridge is coupled to the box, a puff of air at pressure breaks the frangible element allowing the bag to expand into the cavity. This solution has also revealed some drawbacks associated with the difficulty of folding the bags into the desired shape and the development of cracks or fractures in the bags when folded into the desired shape.
It is an object of the present invention to provide for an apparatus that facilitates the assembly of bag-in-box packaging.
It is another object of the present invention to provide for the assembly of bag-in-box packaging.
It is another object of the invention to improve bag-in-box handling and processing.
These objects as well as other objects of the present invention will become apparent in light of the present specification, claims, and drawings.